Wordful Wednesday - Work

Hooo Boy.  This is a loaded topic for me.  I have posted a few times about working lately (here, here, here, and here) because this is a value that I think is quickly becoming lost.

In P's job he is the manager of the service dept.  There are sometimes job openings.  One of his biggest complaints is that the younger generation does not know how to work.  There are many jobs that they have held and they are only in their 20's.  They expect the work to be easy and to be finished for them.  When someone is found who values the work that you need to put in it is rare. 

How I agree.  I also think that this is tragic.

In one of my previous posts (and I believe it was also on Cocoa's blog) I have a quote I love:

In our day, many children grow up with distorted values because we as parents overindulge them. Whether you are well-to-do or, like most of us, of more modest means, we as parents often attempt to provide children with almost everything they want thus taking away from them the blessing of anticipating, of longing for something they do not have. One of the most important things we can teach our children is to deny themselves. Instant gratification generally makes for weak people. How many truly great individuals do you know who never had to struggle? ~Joe J. Christensen, “Greed, Selfishness, and Overindulgence,” Ensign, May 1999

Oh so very true, and it makes me sad.  So we are trying to raise our children differently.  Here are a few examples how we are doing this.  (and I really am not trying to toot my own horn...I am just giving examples)

We teach our kids that the snow doesn't shovel itself, the grass doesn't stop growing at a certain height and the food doesn't get made by magic.

We teach them that sometimes we can recycle something to make another wonderful thing.  We can reuse and reduce something, but it is not always without a bit of planning and work to make it so. (mini mitten tute here)

We teach them to be prepared and to have the skills to take care of themselves and their family. (sawdust candle tute here)

We teach them that you can have fun if you put a little bit of effort into it.  You may have to make the playdough, but with a little prep that takes only 15 min you have hours of enjoyment.

We teach them that work is sometimes something beautiful.  You can have your cake and eat it too.  (sorry had to throw that in there!)  If you work hard the feeling of satisfaction is incredible.  You can learn new skills, you can try new things, you may even make new friends. 

If you have something to say about work, or just want to read a few more opinions, come join in the fun right here.

Cheers

My Job or How to Teach Kids to Work...

This year I have been thinking about children and work.  Oh ya, that thing that causes many parents grief and is a hot topic with many. 

I firmly believe that work is good for children.  I really do. 

I think that children need to learn how to work hard.

When I was about 9 or 10 I started delivering the weekly paper.  It was free to all houses so it was really cheap to deliver.  (we delivered about 300 and got about $12 a week)  When I was finally old enough I held many different jobs.  (waitressing, cashier, babysitting, tree packing, greenhouse work, janitorial, farm work, just to name a few) 

I paid my own way through secondary school (the loan I took out to help has already been paid off) and worked as I was going to school as well. 

When I was married I worked full time with my hubby at the farm his uncles own.  When I miscarried my first, then next time I got pregnant I stopped working there.  Then I moved on to new and different jobs.  ;)

So, I have been thinking about how I teach MY children to work.  I posted about our job chart here, but we have a few different ways of teaching them.

• When we have the opportunity to do service, we take our kids along.  We teach them that working hard for no money at all is also a great thing. 
• When we have jobs to do around the house for some event or open house, our children also take part in the cleaning and getting ready. 
• We keep our children informed about our budget.  How are they to learn about what costs money and how it fits into our budget if we never tell them. 
• We teach them how everything is work.  (like our trip to pluck turkeys here)
• We have them pay for their extra things like DS's or games or whatever they want that is extra on top of what we provide for them.
• When P goes out to sub paper routs in the morning, our kids have the opportunity to earn money with him as well.  They have to work just as hard and deliver papers as well.  (even M goes once in a while)
• When we go on large trips with our family (like to BC and Mexico) our children had to earn mom cash to "pay" for our trip.  All the extra money they earned was put towards $$$ for them to take on our trip. 

That is just a few different ways we have tried.

How do you teach your children about work?  Do you think it is important to teach your kids to work?  What is the most important aspect of work to you?  When do you start with your kids?  (when they are babies or when they are way older)

Cheers

Some Things I Hope My Kids Learn

While reading about a few things lately I have been thinking about some of the things I think are important that my kids learn.  These are some of the top few things I hope that they will pick up and keep with them to help them be prepared for life after they leave home.  (some of these I really had to search for in my pictures I have taken...!)

I want my kids to know how to manage money, even right down to their last penny.  I want them to understand the importance of budgeting.  (so that the last penny is not the only one in their posession!)

I hope that my children know how to do basic home repairs.

I would like my children to know the importance of work, and the satisfaction of a job well done.

I would like my kids to know how to start a fire and cook food with it.  This is a skill so many don't have.  (fire and warmth and food are so very important)

I would like my kids to have fun while being physically fit.  I want them to prefer the outdoors to video games, TV, computer and sitting on their butt.  I want them to enjoy exersize and have fun while doing it.

I would like my children to know how to do things like plucking a turkey, collecting eggs, raising animals, gardening, putting food by (canning, freezing, preserving) and being generally self-reliant.  (having that farm would sure come in handy... :D)

I would like my kids to always be creative and not be afraid to express themselves through their creativity.  (this is G being "Spar" from his fav book, The Secrets of Droon)

I would like my kids to love and appreciate nature, looking for beauty in all of Heavenly Father's creations and showing responsibility in caring for this beautiful earth.  (if you look carefully there are 3 turtles in this picture...)

I would like my children to know that being different and unique is OK, even preferable to "fitting in" and being one of the many.  I would also like them to be comfortable with being so.

Lastly, I want my children to know that they are Children of our Heavenly Father.  I want them to be happy and love themselves.

Cheers

Job Charts

So this is just for you Gicela. (and anyone else who has wanted a copy! and a bit for me and my journaling!) This is a picture/explanation of our job charts and money system.

Here is a picture of the stuff I have on the side of our fridge (just because it was the easiest place to put it.)

It is a list of the REWARDS the boys can earn with their money, my pouch of cash, and their pouches of cash. If you blow it up, you can read it better (just click on it) but some highlights are:

one movie costs $10, everyone who watches pays.

one hour of free time on the computer is also $10

Staying up late to watch a movie from our selection (the ones M can't watch) costs $150, with treats it is $250

We used to have a chart with stuff like a trip to the dollar store, a Ruckers trip, a meal out with Mom or Dad, a few other things that cost us money, but we decided that we needed to save all of our little pennies and made a completely free (just more work for me) chart. We really wanted to get ALL of our preparedness stuff together, a trip to Disney World, and a Farm...that cost $$$!

So, we also have a few other things.

This is a copy of G's reading chart. He gets to go to his room at 7:30 pm, but can stay up to read if he chooses till 8:00pm and read. If he does, he can put an X on a square. Some squares have rewards and if that is the one that he X's off that night then he gets that reward. (this works great for a reluctant reader)

This one is K's chart. To earn his square he must read a book, not a "baby book" as we put it, but a "real" book. Some of his latest are ones like the Hardy Boys (I got a bunch of the original ones and he loves them), Spiderwick Chronicles (he has now finished ALL of them, the 5 original, the 3 beyonds, and owns all but the 1st beyond), all 4 of the Diary of a Wimpy Kid, etc.

This is not so much of a bribe for him, he would read if I just left him alone, but it is nice to reward him for it. His has more rewards on it because it is more effort to earn a square.

I have one more chart that I forgot to take a picture of.

I have a job chart. They earn $5 everyday for their jobs (one of them sets/clears the table for every meal that day, and one does the dishwasher, one gets the day off) and there is a list of jobs they can do for extra cash. Some of the jobs are:
Sorting the mountain of clean laundry $50 (it really is a mountain!)
Cleaning the bathroom $30
Shovelling the walks $30
Weeding the garden (1 veggie) in the summer $30
etc

This is great for me, because when I say, "Today is garbage day." They race to do it and I just have to give them the cash. If they don't do it, I don't pay them...simple for me. This also works better for those who are saving for something like staying up late... :) (I also make them pay to stay up late if they have a friend over for a sleepover...I am still deciding if that is mean or not...)

Anyway, that is what we do as a reward in our home. If it helps you, feel free to take the idea and use it! Let me know how it is working for you.

Cheers

Ponderings on my mostly sane mind...

So, I have been thinking and chatting with a friend about this subject for a few weeks now and thought I would put it out to you.

When I was growing up, I had a job since I was 11. I delivered papers, I babysat, I worked at Bonanza (remember that restaurant?!), I also worked at a greenhouse, a tree packing plant and a drug store. While going to college I was also an early morning janitor.

After I finished College I worked at "The Farm" (P's family farm...it is quite the operation), for P's Aunt, at a tree packing plant, babysitting, and housekeeping. (seems my jobs have a theme!)

After I miscarried my first child I stopped working so that I could carry my baby in safety. We have been pregnant 6 times and have 3 beautiful boys! What a blessing...but work HAS NOT STOPPED! I may not get paid, but I still have a huge job.

I get to clean my house (seems like every five min or so), do laundry, teach my children (everything but Math...thank you Davilyn!), teach women in my ward, learn new skills, do P's running around, be a secretary, be an errand runner, phone message taker, general do-it-all-type person. This is not something that you don't also do. I take comfort in the fact that I am not alone.

I came across this quote the other day...

In our day, many children grow up with distorted values because we as parents overindulge them. Whether you are well-to-do or, like most of us, of more modest means, we as parents often attempt to provide children with almost everything they want thus taking away from them the blessing of anticipating, of longing for something they do not have. One of the most important things we can teach our children is to deny themselves. Instant gratification generally makes for weak people. How many truly great individuals do you know who never had to struggle? ~Joe J. Christensen, “Greed, Selfishness, and Overindulgence,” Ensign, May 1999


This quote really hit home to me. I feel that my childhood, while not ideal to some, really taught me how to be a good adult. I feel grateful that I had to work. What a blessing to know the value of work. When I plant a garden, I know darn well that the carrots don't grow themselves...I know that I am going to have to work stinking hard to weed those babies! But O how sweet they taste when I harvest them! I enjoy them all the more because I have worked VERY hard to get them.

So, how do you teach your kids how to work? I really want to know. It is a different world out there now. I can't send my kids out to do papers in the morning by themselves, it is scary! (but they do go with P when he subs a route) Not many people get boy babysitters, but K is getting his certification this year so that he will be ready if someone does call him. We have a job chart, the boys get "paid" in monopoly money and they "buy" their privileges that way...but how do you teach YOUR kids the VALUE of work? I really want to know. I look forward to hearing from you.

Cheers